Encounters With The Enemy
by BITBIT
Summary: Three views on Severus Snape when he returns to Hogwarts before his death.
1. Poppy Pomfrey

Poppy Pomfrey:  
I jerk awake, hearing a knock on my door. Quickly I hop out of bed, muttering to myself the whole time.  
"Why can't they just leave me alone" I ask nobody and groan while I slip on my night robes, fumble around for my wand and pull on that famous stern expression I am known for. I travel through my quarters, into my office, I really can only expect a frantic first year at this time of night, most of the other students have learned that whatever it is, it can wait until the morning. I take a deep calming breath and swing open the door.  
Only a small cry has time to escape my lips before I slap my hand to my mouth. I yelp not because of the Longbottom boy who is nearly dead at my doorstep but because of the man who has dragged him here.  
Severus Snape. Honestly, he has the nerve to show up here after what he has done? He may be the current headmaster of Hogwarts but he is nothing to me.  
"Poppy-" He starts taking a step towards me.  
In a radical moment of instinct I seize Longbottom by the arm and pull him into my office, slamming the door on Snape's face, not caring if the noise will wake my other patients.  
"Sit down, Neville" I command him not taking my eyes off the door, as if I can see through it. Not completely regretting what I have just done I carefully open it again.  
Snape still stands there, as if he were stunned, more hurt than I have ever seen him, and I have seen this man hurt. Yes, I did take care of him all these years and I cannot deny that for a while I would have trusted Severus Snape with my life. But can he seriously expect me to stay loyal when he has not?  
I clear my throat. "You-Just, just wait out here" I tell him, I sense that he wants to talk and I am human enough to grant him that.  
This time I close the door silently and turn to Longbottom.  
I do my job, and do my job only, but sometimes this is hard. You see it is not my job to get involved, to get attached and over time I've learned not to ask questions. But somehow, this year, a certain group of students have wormed their way into my heart, and Longbottom is one of them.  
I give him a questioning glance, and he gets it.  
"The carrows" he begins and scrunches his nose at the potion I have just handed him.  
"Naturally" I say and sit down on the sofa beside him. I listen intently to his horror story and when he is finished I pat him on the back and send him back off into the dark. For there is only so much I can do for him, for all of them.  
"Severus?" I whisper, his first name feels like acid on my tongue. There is a definite chill in my voice.  
"Poppy-"  
I cut him off once more, "You should not be here" I say, but cautiously allow him into my office  
"Poppy, listen, I-I just want you to know that everything is not what it seems" He seems sincere, and I know exactly what he is talking about.  
I laugh coldly and cross my arms over my chest. "So you did not kill Albus Dumbledore?" I ask sarcastically not quite looking him in the eye.  
Even in the dim light I can see something flash in his eyes and his shadowed feature harden. "No, Poppy. I killed him." he says almost blankly.  
What a bloody git! This man standing before me, who shows no remorse, no feelings, not even denial. I have never been angrier in my life. The emotion surges through me and I cannot control it so I slap him across the face with as much force as I can muster. He does not react, just stares at me.  
"Severus" I start, my chest heaving violently "I think you should go" I tell him, my words thick and at this he speaks.  
"Poppy, I thought that you out of all of them- I thought I could-you would- have some sort of faith in me" He stammers.  
My chin quivers and I know the tears are coming. I hate this, I hate the world I am living in, I hate this war, and now I hate the man I once loved as my own child.  
"Have-faith-in you?" I ask with a tone of pure disgust and the tears begin to fall but I do not bother with them. He nods. "Severus Snape I have, I have for many years, and I have trusted you when others would not. I have stood by you all these years but now- now you have gone and done something that I cannot even look past." I choke out. "I will never-"  
But I am cut off from my rampage because he lurches at me and pins me against the stone wall. I draw my wand quickly and press it firmly against his neck. I could do it, I am poweful, I have known the spell for quite a while now, I could do this, right here, right now.  
"Please don't say it" He mutters looking me painfully in the eyes.  
"Don't say what" I ask myself mentally. "That I can never trust him, speak to him-never love him again?"  
I find my voice. "Get off of me and get out, Snape!" I shriek and push him away. He steps back.  
"I wish I could tell you, Poppy. You above all" He says and slithers back through the door and is gone.  
"What does he mean? Could tell me what?" I yell mentally.  
My heart pounding in my chest, my mind running furiously, my hands curled into angry fists, I scream and finally sink to the floor my shoulders shaking silently with sobs. I remember that shy young boy, who had been hurt by so many and was so innocent; he has turned into the person I absolutely despise, who has hurt so many, and is not so innocent. I scream again with fury and pain and continue my weeping fit, sitting on the stone cold floor.  
After at least an hour I get up and find my way back to bed knowing sleep will not come easily, I walk slowly, muttering the best swear words I can come up with for Severus Snape.  
-

If you like it **review**, I won't beg you. **All of this belongs to J.K. Rowling. **To the readers of **My Darling**, sorry it is taking so long, but I need to know what happens before the after the second task but before the third, please message me if you would like to continue. **THANKS!**


	2. Minerva Mcgonagall

Minerva McGonagall:  
My eyes open slowly as if they are unwilling to start the day; my sore body tells me the same thing. I roll over in my warm bed and sigh deeply then slowly crawl out of it. My room seems exceptionally dark this morning so I walk to the window and throw open the drapes. The world I look into is dull, gray and rainy. Instinctively I put my hand on the glass, feeling for temperature, it is cold and the heat from my hand leaves a clearing in the dew of the window, I stare at the print until it disappears.  
"Somewhere he is out there" I say softly to myself and my breathing becomes a bit short. Soon I realize that I cannot stand at this window forever so I pull the drapes closed and start to prepare myself for the day.  
When I am ready I snatch my wand up from my night stand and walk through the lonely corridors to my office. I pull a few books into my arms, preparing to take them to the library, and start walking. The journey from my office to the library seems oddly long. I only encounter a few students on my way and give my best attempts at a smile, this used to be a rare thing but I have found that it is of some comfort to- well maybe more to me than them. As I walk I get a glimpse of the wing of the castle where the headmaster's office is. Sickening to think that Severus Bloody Snape is having a grand time up there. Fury, if I could have it my way he would be dead in an instant and the mere thought of him sitting in Albus Dumbledore's chair seems to engross me. I walk not paying attention, my eyes looking trough the walls; I can almost see his smirk as if he were standing right in front of me.  
"Such a no good-" but my psychotic murmuring is stopped because the next thing I know I am sprawled on the ground, my books and papers everywhere.  
"I'm sorry, Minerva" I am so flustered, and my cheeks become hot with embarrassment, that the vaguely familiar voice is unrecognizable.  
"Oh-"  
"Here" an extremely pale hand is offered to me and I take it having successfully scraped up everything that I dropped. As I come up from the ground, I am face to face with this man, no not a man but a pair of deep brown eyes that instantly recognize.  
I gasped and pull away sharply. "You" I growl not taking my eyes off of him, no matter how piercing his stare is. "Who in the ruddy hell do you think you are? Did you grow tired of your stay in the headmaster's office?" I ask in one of my tones.  
His expression is blank. "No, not quite yet." he says.  
I shake my head and turn on my heel, taking my famously long strides. I can hear him hurrying after me.  
"Minerva" he says in a hushed tone, probably does not want any students to see him. "Minerva" he calls again and grabs my arm, pulling me to a halt. In one swift motion my wand is out and I have turned around with it pointed, ready, at his chest. He anticipated it and had his pulled to.  
"Minerva, you are acting like a child" He continues, neither of us break eye contact or lower are wands. "I would suggest that as we are adults we start behaving like it?"  
"I am acting like the child, Severus?" I ask in a harsh whisper, trying not to draw attention. "I do not hide in that bloody office all day because I am to afraid of what will be the consequences of my actions. I did not cause the trouble and I certainly do not solve my problems by fighting, or bringing in reinforcements to handle the situation for me" I am referring to the carrows. "And I am the child, am I?" I ask once more.  
He only blinks; I will never understand this man.  
He drops his wand.  
"What was your reason for showing your ugly face here today, Severus Snape?" I spit "Did you fancy a stroll? Come to see if the carrows were doing their job correctly? Well, Poppy can answer that one for you. Apologize? No? Make a fool of yourself? Kill somebody else? Show that you are still alive and will long rein this school?"  
"Precisely" he says, and rage moves through my body, he would never give anyone a straight answer to such a question.  
"Yes, yes very good be your ominous self!" I am now shouting "Long live Headmaster Snape, the most mysterious man that ever lived!" I chant, my wand still pointed. By this time my commotion has drawn a crowed. I'm sure that some students would have paid to see me, Minerva McGonagall act like this, but in this moment I do not care.  
The headmaster still stares at me emotionless.  
"Does it hurt you, Severus? Does it bother you to know that you are hated? Do you know that I hate you almost as much as I hate the dark lord?" I ask him, and finally I see it, even if it was for only a moment, a twinge of sadness appears on his aging features and quickly disappears. I lower my wand and breathe quickly. He looks around to the on lookers and then back to me.  
"One day, you will understand, Minerva" he says so that only I can hear "One day" he repeats nods and then turns. The small crowed that was there the last time I looked has turned into a mob. They clear a path and he walks trough, silently.  
Then there is quiet, I do not know what he means. The students look at me. Leaning against the wall, lost in thought I must look pathetic. I quickly return to my old self and promptly shoo them away. As they are leaving I catch a conversation.  
"He's driving them all mad." a 5th year Ravenclaw was saying "Laura was in the Hospital wing the other night, she said that she heard Snape and Madam Pomfrey talking, late, she said it must have been past midnight. Anyways they had some sort of argument, of course and when he left she said that she was sure that Pomfrey screamed."  
-

If you like it **review**, I won't beg you. **All of this belongs to J.K. Rowling. **To the readers of **My Darling**, sorry it is taking so long, but I need to know what happens before the after the second task but before the third, please message me if you would like to continue. **THANKS!**


	3. Albus Dumbledore

I watch him as he strides into the office and slams the door. He makes two fists and bangs the wood with great force, grunting angrily and breathing heavily, he does it again, his slick black hair becoming extremely untamed. He stops and stands face to the wall not saying a word. If I did not know him better I would have believed that he was lost in thought or devising some sort of plan, but after all I do know this man, quite well.  
"Severus" I will him to turn around and face me, but know he won't. "Do not ignore me Severus" I take a strict tone and stand from my chair and give him a piercing stare from my portrait, still he faces the wall.  
"I do not wish to speak with you now, Albus" He says silkily although I can detect a twinge of anger laced in his voice.  
"Severus, I do not think I ask much of you and-"  
At this he spins around violently his face red with anger and he moves towards my portrait quickly.  
"That's exactly it!" He screams his body shaking "You do not think!" his hand goes jerkily to his head and he points to it. "Did you ever THINK that you do ask too much of me? Did you ever THINK that I cannot handle this? Did you ever THINK of how much suffering you were going to put me through?" he still screams but I only stare at him calmly.  
"Yes, Severus I did. Excuse me if I am mistaken but I thought you were man enough to handle such a situation."  
"I have played my part well, Albus! I have them fooled, I have them all fooled. I deserve a better life than I am living." he yells.  
"Yes, you have done well" I tell him "but you still have a role to play. When the war ends and Voldemort is gone you will be proved inculpable-"  
"When will this end, Albus? It could go on forever as far as I see." he asks desperately.  
I do not have an answer. And he gives me his famous blank stare.  
"That's what I thought" he says and waves his wand so quickly I barley have time to realize what he is doing. My portrait falls face down on the ground; surely he knows that I will move to another painting. I do and again I am facing the ground. I hear the thud of hundreds of more frames on the ground; he has knocked them all off the wall. I hear him plop down in the desk chair and he sighs.  
"Severus" I growl over the grumbling of the past, sleepy headmasters and headmistresses. "Severus you are acting like a child" I finish harshly.  
He laughs shortly and coldly. "That's exactly what Minerva told me."  
Maybe I should reconsider. Living two lives, pretending to be the darkest wizard's most faithful servant and being one of the most hated men in the wearing world, could drive a man mad. In this case I believe it has.

If you like it **review**, I won't beg you. **All of this belongs to J.K. Rowling. **To the readers of **My Darling**, sorry it is taking so long, but I need to know what happens before the after the second task but before the third, please message me if you would like to continue. **THANKS!**


End file.
